Chasing the Stars
by BigHead
Summary: Something horrible happened during the time the Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers were fighting in the streets of Angel Grove. Now, Tommy Oliver receives an unexpected visitor in Reefside. Is he an enemy or an ally? MMPR to PRDT. Warning: Character Death!
1. Prologue

**Chasing the Stars**

**Disclaimer:** None of this belongs to me. Power Rangers belongs to Disney.

**Summary:** Something horrible happened during the time the Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers were fighting in the streets of Angel Grove. Now, Tommy Oliver receives an unexpected visitor in Reefside. Is he an enemy or an ally? MMPR to PRDT.

**Warning: **Character death!!!!

**Rating: **R for language and some graphic description of violence, just to be on the safe side.

**Author's Notes: **Thanks to Mom, Dad and that incredible sex that gave origin to me. 1- Change the car's oil 2- Remember to pay the gas bill... Damn, not those notes. This is an AU fic, the timeline is screwed enough to fit my needs. Thanks to Joshua The Evil Guy and 3D Master for the beta and advice. You rock! No animals, rubber monsters or evil warlords were harmed in the making of this fanfic.

**Feedback**: YESSSS!!!! PLEEEEAAAASEEE!!!

* * *

Prologue – Unforeseen Actions

To Farcus "Bulk" Bulkmeyer, the life in Angel Grove was an easy one: dodge school, eat as much as you can for free over at Ernie's and run like crazy from monster attacks. His long time and only friend Eugene "Skull" Skullovich was the only one who shared this 'complex' world view. So, right now they were bumming around the streets, trying to find something to do that didn't need money or too much brainpower.

"Bulk?" Skull asked, kicking a small pebble on the ground and watching it roll for some feet.

"Yeah?"

"Do you think about the past?"

It didn't need too much brainpower to think about it, just a good memory. And with a saddened voice, the young man answered. "Yeah."

"What would you like to change about it?"

/That/ required a lot of thought. There were so many things he wanted to change, but he guessed he only needed one or two to affect his whole life.

Before he had a chance to answer, one of the typical events of their lives happened a couple dozen feet in front of them: a monster and a lot of those gray things appeared out of thin air. This monster looked quite menacing, with grayish-blue skin, some things protruding from his arms that looked like quills and a mouth full of row after row of teeth. Bulk looked at his friend, who looked back at him. "Run? Hide?" Skull asked, terrified.

"HIDE!" he shouted, and they both scrambled to a low wall a few meters behind them. Suddenly, out of nowhere, six color-coded warriors appeared, and engaged the gray things, the so-called Putties. Bulk and Skull's eyes were transfixed in the Power Rangers. Sure, they were cowards, but they loved some honest-to-good righteous violence, mainly when it was applied to someone else. The Rangers dealt with the Putties in record time, and they finally faced the main monster. They talked for some time, the monster probably issuing some major threats, the Rangers defying them. Then the monster lifted his arms, and all hell broke loose.

* * *

Electatron was the name, this time. Tommy always thought that Zedd and Rita had no creativity whatsoever in creating monster names, they were all too corny or too stupid. Unfortunately, what they lacked in names, they more than compensated in lethality. When the monster raised his arms, everyone got out of the way, waiting for something. They were not disappointed when two giant bolts of electricity jumped out of them, lighting the entire street like a miniature sun for some brief moments and exploding a parked car a few meters in their backs.

Tommy drew his Dragon Dagger and attacked the monster before he could charge another attack. Two cuts penetrated the thick skin, but they were too shallow to do any real damage. Electatron used his massive muscles to strike him, and he flew backwards a couple of meters, mostly unharmed but a bit out of breath. Jason took the cue to attack, along with Billy. They succeeded in penetrating the monster's defense once again, but his skin was just too thick. Both Rangers jumped back, and the monster raised his arms once again.

That's when the Rangers heard a scream, which paralyzed every single one of them.

"COOOONNNEEEERRR!!!"

And the monster fired his electrical bolts once again, aiming to a target that wasn't protected by Ranger armor.

* * *

Conner was a curious kid, much like any seven-year old boy. When the sounds of fight had begun, he had slipped from the store he and his mother were hiding in, and decided to approach the fighters. After all, he was a fan of the Power Rangers, like a lot of his friends from school. When his mother realized that he had disappeared it was already too late.

* * *

Bulk and Skull saw the stupid kid approaching the fight, apparently oblivious to the danger. He was too far away from the Rangers to help, but just a few feet from them. Skull began to call him.

"Kid! Hey, kid! Come here! It's too dangerous! Come here, kid!" he kept calling, but, if he was being heard over the sounds of fight, the boy was simply ignoring him. Suddenly, the kid's mother appeared, and she yelled his name at the same time the monster raised his arms for a second time.

"COOOONNNEEEERRR!!!"

Bulk and Skull noticed both actions.

The kid was dead.

* * *

Some things define a hero, but the most important of those things is doing the right thing at the right time. One young man took a decision in a microsecond, and that decision would alter the destinies of everyone involved in the scene for the rest of their lives.

He came out of his hiding spot running like a madman. He looked at the monster, and instead of tackling the small boy out of harm's way, he stood in its path.

Two lightning bolts, with enough power to light a small town hit his body at the same time, frying his nervous system and paralyzing his heart and brain. He was dead even before he felt any pain.


	2. Return of the Missing Son

Chapter 1 – Return of the Missing Son

The grave on Angel Grove Cemetery was rarely visited nowadays. One or two people who knew him over the years sometimes came back, usually to have some perspective on what went wrong and the fact that nobody is perfect, no matter how good their intentions were.

So, nobody jumped when a flash of dark blue light appeared from nowhere, leaving in its trail a tall and imposing hooded figure. Said figure crouched down on the grave, fingers trailing the letters on the tombstone.

"Not anymore, buddy. Not anymore," he said, and disappeared in another flash of blue.

* * *

Dr. Thomas Oliver was doing one of the most dreadful things of any teacher's life, scoring tests. Did teenagers have some sort of mental block that halted any attempt of access to information not related to girls or guys, clothes and the usual trends? He surely didn't remember being like that when he was of their age. Of course, when he was their age, he was more worried about the monster-of-the-week than anything else. Matter of fact, nowadays he was still more worried about the monster-of-the-week than anything else. Getting old was so overrated sometimes.

A strong knock at his front door took him away from his musings, and he stood up, stretching up, vertebrae aligning with a pop. Yep, getting old, overrated.

It wasn't anybody from his team, since Hayley had the key and the kids didn't bother with a trivial thing like knocking, generally barging in without being invited. So, he opened the door and the person on the other side surprised him. He was as tall as Tommy, if not a bit taller, with a deep tan that spoke of countless hours under the sun, muscular, dressed in a strange fashion, blue shirt made of some material that resembled rough cotton, gray pants and some strange boots. A cape with a hood finalized the ensemble, making him look like a refugee from some B-movie. But what struck Dr. Oliver as completely odd where the tattoos, which covered much of his bare arms and the left part of the man's face, making him look like a Maori. A scar above his right eyebrow was also plain visible.

But, aside from the strangeness, Tommy found something odd about him, like some sort of . . . vibe, that came from him. And the feeling that he /knew/ the man from somewhere.

"Hello, Tommy. Won't you invite an old . . . friend in?" the man spoke, and suddenly recognition set in.

"Bulk?"


	3. UnExplanations

Chapter 2 – Un-Explanations 

Tommy invited the refugee-looking Bulk to his living room, and asked him to sit. He did, looking around the room calmly, but with professional efficiency. They stayed in awkward silence for a couple of minutes, before Dr. Oliver decided to speak.

"So, where have you been all these years?" he asked, not exactly comfortable with his presence.

"Straight to the point. I like that. And I've been . . . around."

Tommy sighed while his mind rewound to a point in time some several years ago.

--O--

They saw Skull's sacrifice, but the monster didn't give them a break long enough for someone to offer support. Bulk grabbed his friend's corpse from the ground and took it to a more secured location.

The rest of the battle was typical, even dangerous regarding the monster's electrical assaults, but the heavily insulated Megazord held bravely under the barrage, granting the powered teens the upper hand and the final victory. When it was destroyed, the Rangers send the Zords back to their resting places, while they went to see their dead friend. They approached still morphed, taking notice of a silently crying Bulk.

"Bulk?" the Pink Ranger asked. The teen's only action was to look momentarily from his friend's body to the helmeted hero. "I just want you to know that you aren't alone in it. We'll all be here, for you and for him."

Bulk looked back at her, angrily. "Why do you care? You didn't even knew him!" he said, under gritted teeth.

The Pink Ranger's hand moved to the clasps in her helmet, after a quick survey of the area. She opened them, and removed the helmet, showing to Bulk the saddened face of Kimberly Ann Hart. A few seconds later, all of her friends were without their helmets.

"Yes, we did," Tommy answered him, crying as well.

--O--

"I haven't heard from you for . . ." Tommy began.

"A long time. But don't worry, life has been . . . life, for me," Bulk answered, his face showing a hint of a smile. "So, how is the team going?"

"Team? What team?" Tommy asked, feigning ignorance.

"The Dino Thunder? Which you are mentor and active participant? Black, I believe it is this time?"

"H-How do you know?"

The smile grew a little bit. Problem was, it now looked more like a predator's baring of teeth than a smile.

"I have my ways."

Tommy was about to push for more information when his bracelet sounded the alert. He looked at Bulk, which still had the smile plastered in his face.

"I believe it is for you. That time of the week?" he asked, deadpan.

The paleontologist's only answer was a sad smile.


	4. Powers

Chapter 3 – Powers 

Tommy flew through the air for the third time in less than two minutes. The monster was too strong/_way_/ too strong. Somehow Mesogog had done something different, because the team was being smashed flat by the monster and the Tyrano-drones. And curiously, neither Mesogog's chief minions had appeared, nor had the monster done any kind of idle threats. It had simply appeared with thirty or so of the drones accompanying it, and started destroying things.

And now it had its eyes, all six of them, fixed on the DT team. The black Ranger wanted to taunt it, but taunt a thing that was systematically cleaning the floor with them wasn't a smart move. Conner was out for the count, and his un-morphed form was being protected by Kira. Ethan and Trent were trying to deal with the drones, which apparently were also in the stronger side of the balance.

The most experienced Ranger of all times managed to score a good hit with his Staff, but it apparently just made the monster get angrier. What the heck was going on? None of this made any sense.

He backed up a bit, the monster circling him from a bit afar, and the Ranger took the opportunity to look around. Kira was fighting hard with quite a few drones around her, but from his point of view and her reaction times, the evil beings would win in no time. Trent was faring a little better, somehow his stronger powers making him able to still fight, but Ethan was being pummeled by quite a lot of claws and feet, not even his skin would hold for so long.

Tommy focused back on the monster at his front, just in time to dodge part of a stone wall that the monster had ripped off the ground. Feeling his powers wane, he realized he would have just another chance before the monster would . . .

With not enough energy to power up the Staff's special attacks, he would have to try straight physical damage. So, he ran in the direction of the monster and tried to jump and score a hit on one of its eyes. And what the monster did surprised him even more, because it dodged the strike, and in a feat of speed, it grabbed the Brachio Staff and pulled, hard. Tommy was yanked, straight into the path of an impossibly strong fist. The punch caught him right in the middle of the chest, and even with the protection of Ranger armor, he felt something give way inside of him. He flew backwards once again, landing on the grass some twenty feet behind him, sans his Staff. The monster threw it away, far away.

Without energy, Tommy reverted to his human appearance, and he instantly grabbed his chest, which was hurting as if on fire. He was a bit more resilient than a normal human, but one straight punch from the monster and it would be bye-bye Ranger. He looked around, and Trent was the only one still standing.

That's when a strong hand grabbed his shoulder from the back. He was so weak that he didn't even flinch from the surprise. He looked to the hand and straight to the face of a smirking Bulk.

"I'll handle it from here," he said, and walked straight to the monster, with sure steps. The monster, confused by the actions of the single human, looked dumbly at him, who stopped at arm's length.

"This is going to hurt," the human said, smiling. The genetic monstrosity was about to laugh, when a human-sized fist connected to its belly.

The monster flew backwards, farther than even Tommy had flown, and it landed in a heap, its hardened skin showing a dent where the fist had connected.

"Holy Mother of . . . " Tommy said, his mouth hanging open almost to the floor. The drones, seeing the monster hurt, decided to defend him, forming a semi-circle in front of it. The first ones to attack Bulk were dealt so fast that Dr. O had difficult in seeing him move. Then, instead of attacking one-on-one, the biomonstrosities ganged up on him, in duos and trios. They could instead throw feathers, for all the effect it had on the man. He dodged and hit with strength and speed that the paleontologist had never seen before. He apparently was stronger than a Ranger, faster, and maybe even stronger than a few super-monsters he had faced in the past.

The remaining drones backed up for a while, checking the enemy with renewed caution.

"You can go now and live to fight another day, or I can finish this up. Your choice," Bulk said, not even breathing hard.

The monster looked around, and with quick thinking, decided to take its losses and report back to its master, disappearing with the drones in a stream of green energy.

Bulk looked back to Tommy, who had approached his fallen team members, and was helping them to stand up. He approached and helped Kira, while Trent dealt with Conner.

"How did . . ." Dr. Oliver started asking, still too surprised with Bulk's power.

"I'll explain everything after we help your team. Right now, I have just one question for you," he said, putting the still out Kira in a fireman's carry.

"What?"

"What are the Rangers powers?"


	5. Lies we Tell

Chapter 4 – Lies We Tell 

After placing his team in cots in the underground base, Tommy sat down at a chair, still holding his chest.

"Let me see it," Bulk told him in a no-nonsense voice.

The Dino Thunder mentor sighed, and with a lot of strained and painful motions, he finally took off his shirt. His chest to the left was a huge mass of purple, blue and angry red in several different shades. With sure motions and a knowing face, Bulk probed the area, and Tommy winced once or twice.

"Nothing broken, but you probably sprained a coupla ribs. You have something that I can tie these up?" the man asked. Dr. O pointed to him the medical cabinet to a corner. While he was fussing inside the well stocked cabinet, Tommy voiced his doubts.

"What did you mean when you said 'Ranger powers'?" he asked.

Bulk remained silent but smiling, until he returned with some gauze, tape, muscle relaxant and an ointment. He started spreading the ointment, focusing on the task at hand.

"You ever wondered why you were chosen to be a Ranger? Why any of you were? Jason, Zack, Trini, Kim? The new ones? The old ones?" Bulk asked.

That threw Tommy into a loop. Evilness aside from his first incarnation as a Ranger, he always thought he was chosen to keep on fighting because of a higher reason.

"Because we were the right people?" Tommy asked, wary, and the smirk Bulk returned was almost sympathetic, if it hadn't a hint of critic on it. "That wasn't it?"

"Yes and no. Yes, you probably were the right people, and Zordon was a great judge of character, even with his plotting. But why you? Why Jason? Why not a trained soldier, a special ops of some sort, with years of experience in the battlefield? Someone older, perhaps? Why teenagers?"

To be honest, Bulk made sense. He **never** questioned his calling. None of them ever did.

"You never thought about that, right?" Bulk asked, and Tommy replied with a quick shake of his head. He winced when the old acquaintance tightened the gauze a bit. "And that, my friend, is the main answer to all the questions. No one ever questioned Zordon. Or Ninjor. Or Dulcea. You guys and girls were always so enraptured in fighting the good fight and being good guys that all of you ever shrugged this particular question aside. Why teenagers? Because none would question the words of the almighty Zordon," Bulk said, anger clearly reflected in his voice.

"Why do you hate Zordon so much?" Tommy asked, getting more worried at each passing moment. Bulk finished taping him, and with a light tap on his shoulder, announced that he was finished with him.

"That goes back to my first question. What are the Ranger powers? And don't tell me it's the color-coded outfits and the snazzy weapons, or the super robots. What makes _you_ a Ranger?"

Tommy remained silent. If he thought it over, aside from the strength and protection that the suit provided and access to the weapons, he had absolutely no idea.

"Do you think the Power Coins were only good enough to power your suits and weapons? And your Zords?" Bulk asked, sitting in another chair in front of his old friend. "Think about it, Tommy, you are a smart guy. What is wrong with this picture?"

A few moments passed, still in silence.

"Let me help you connect the dots, since you are too close to the problem to see it clearly. The Coins powered your Zords. What does this particular piece of information tell you?"

Tommy lifted his head, finally making the connection. "That there was more energy in those Coins than we ever imagined. If one of them could power up the Zords . . ."

"Where was the energy when you were only fighting as a Ranger?" Bulk completed.

"How do you know that?" the oldest Ranger in activity asked, checking the newcomer under a different eye.

"I'll answer that in a few moments. But, the main point is, your suits? The 'Ranger Armor'? It was armor, all right, but it acted mostly as a power regulator, to block you from access the true power of the Coins, the true Power of a Ranger."

"So that means . . ."

"Zordon and all the other mentors lied to all of you? Yes, they did."


End file.
